Toilet seat guard dispenser



June 5, 1934. c D MORTON 1,961,704

TOILET SEAT GUARD DISPENSER Filed July 15, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet l F 1. J1. g. 2.

l Char/41D, mar/072.,

June 5, 1934.

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c. D. MORTON 1,961,704

TOILET SEAT GUARD DISPENSER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 15, 1932 Char/e43 7720740720 June 5, 1934. D MORTON 1,961,704

TOILET SEAT GUARD DISPENSER Patented June 5, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TOILET SEAT GUARD DISPENSER Charles D. Morton, River Forest, Ill.

Application July 15, 1932, Serial No. 622,685

11 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved type of coin-controlled dispenser for dispensing toilet seat covers or guards one at a time for positioning upon the top of a toilet seat to serve as a guard or protecting medium for the promotion of sanitation and a preventative for the spread of contractional diseases, the germs of which sometimes infect toilet seats.

It is an object of this invention to provide an If) improved type of toilet seat guard dispenser adapted to be conveniently mounted or installed on any toilet bowl by means of the toilet seat hinge posts to so position the dispenser that the same may be conveniently operated when a coin is deposited to cause a properly shaped seat guard to be discharged from the dispenser casing for positioning upon the toilet seat to cover the same and serve as a shield for the protection of a person using the toilet.

It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved type of coin-controlled toilet seat guard dispenser which may be conveniently mounted upon the upper rear portion of a toilet bowl or in a convenient position adjacent thereto to permit the guard or sanitary cover to be withdrawn from the dispenser housing when a coin-controlled member is operated, said guard being adapted to be conveniently guided into position upon the toilet seat and including outer 301 and inner flaps or extensions to cover the outer and inner curved sections of the front portion of the toilet seat.

It is furthermore an object of this invention to provide a toilet seat guard dispenser of a coin-controlled type wherein a pack of continuous or connected toilet seat guards are positioned to be acted upon by a feed mechanism controlled by a deposited coin and operable to discharge a single toilet seat guard in proper position to per- 401 mit the same to be conveniently spread upon the top of a toilet seat to serve as a protecting medium for a person using a toilet and adapted to be separated from the guards contained within the dispenser housing and be deposited within the '45 toilet bowl after a person has finished with the use of the guard.

It is an important object of this invention to provide an improved type of toilet seat guard dispenser adapted to be conveniently mounted on a toilet bowl or adjacent thereto and enclosing apack of folded and connected toilet seat covers or guards made of paper or other suitable inexpensive material and adapted to be dispensed one at a time by the operation of a coin-controlled mechanism which serves to project the advance end of a guard into an accessible position to permit a person operating the machine to conveniently draw the entire guard outwardly from the dispenser housing and position the same over the toilet seat to permit an auxiliary guard flap to extend downwardly into the toilet bowl to serve as a penis guard.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved type of guard dispenser for the dispensing of folded guards one at a time from a dispenser housing or case by means of discharge shoes the operation of which are controlled by means of a coin in combination with the actuation of a control member to cause one end of a guard to be projected from the casing allowing the guard to be pulled outwardly and spread over a support ready for use.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a toilet seat guard dispenser adapted to be supported in convenient relationship to a toilet seat and containing a continuous strip or pad of folded toilet seat guards to be dispensed one at a time from the dispenser housing by means of improved feed mechanisms operable by a control means upon depositing a coin in the dispenser but being inoperable by the operation of said means without the insertion of a coin.

Other and further important objects of this invention will be apparent from the disclosures in the specification and the accompanying draw ings.

The invention (in a preferred form) is illustrated in the drawings and hereinafter more fully described.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a toilet and flush tank having associated therewith an improved toilet seat guard dispenser embodying the principles of this invention and illustrating a guard in position covering the toilet seat.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the toilet, flush tank and the dispenser illustrating a portion of the toilet in section taken on line IIII of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged front elevational view of the dispenser taken on line IIIIII of Figure 2 with the operation of certain of the parts i1- lustrated in dotted lines.

Figure 4 is an enlarged transverse sectional View of the dispenser taken on line IV-IV of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary detail view of a portion of the dispenser mechanism taken on line VV of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional detail view taken through the dispenser on line VIVI of Figure 3.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional View of a portion of the dispenser taken on line VII- JII of Figure 3.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary detail sectional view taken on line VIIIVIII of Figure '7.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on line IX-IX of Figure 3.

Figure 10 is a detail sectional view taken on line XX of Figure 6 illustrating the operation of the operating finger piece in dotted lines.

As shown on the drawings:

he reference numeral 1 indicates a toilet bowl adapted to be flushed from a flush tank 2 connected therewith in the ordinary manner. Removably secured on the upper rear portion of the toilet bowl 1 is a pair of hinge bolts or posts 3 on which a toilet seat 4 is hingedly connected.

The improved toilet seat guard dispenser is adapted to be positioned in front of the flush tank 2 and is supported in position by means of a pair of legs or brackets 5, the lower ends of which are bent at an angle and are provided with a plurality of apertures to permit the hinge posts 3 to be projected therethrough for the purpose of rigidly bolting the dispenser in position supported on the upper rear portion of the toilet 1 as clearly illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings. The upper ends of the brackets 5 are rigidly secured on the rear of a back plate or panel 6 formed with a top forwardly directed flange 7 and side flanges 8 leaving the lower portion and the front of the rear section open. The lower margin of the back plate 6 continues downwardly and is deflected forwardly to provide guide or deflecting shield or apron 9 to serve as a means for defleeting and guiding the guards outwardly into a position for use to cover the toilet seat 4. Supported on the back plate 6 near the side margins thereof is a pair of pins or studs 10 which project forwardly and are provided with knobs or heads. The studs 10 are provided to serve as supports or retaining means for holding a stack or pad 11 of toilet seat guards 12 in position against the inner surface of the mounting plate 6 and within the rear chamber of the dispenser in a position to permit the seat cover guards to be dispensed one at a time through an outlet opening 13 provided in the bottom of the dispenser. The toilet seat guard pad is formed. with the rear end of the guard 12 superimposed and secured together to form a binding 14 which is adapted to be projected into an opening 27 provided in an angular or channel-shaped retaining member or strip 15 which is secured on the inner side of the lower margin of the back plate 6 as clearly illustrated in Figure 6 and is provided with a downwardly inclined cutter flange or blade 16 to permit the rear end or tail section of a guard 12 to be torn ofi or severed from the end portion or binding section 14 of the pad of seat cover guards. Each of the seat cover guards 12 is of oval shape or of a shape compleinental to the shape of the seat cover and has a middle portion thereof cut in the form of a loop to provide an auxiliary flap or apron 17 which, when the guard is pulled outwardly, and is disposed in a position to cover the top of the toilet seat 4 as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, is permitted to drop downwardly into the bowl 1 covering the curved front section of the toilet seat bowl to act as a penis protector. The front end of each of the guards 12 is shaped to provide a protecting flap 18 adapted to overhang the front end of a toilet seat. The tail flap 19 of each of the toilet seat guards holds the rear end of the guard connected with the hem of the pack of guards positioned within the rear chamber 20 forming part of the dispenser. Pivotally connected to the lower end of the side flanges 8 of the rear section of the dispenser is a front casing or housing comprising a front wall or plate 21, side Walls 22, a top wall or flange 23 and a bottom wall or flange 24. Secured within the casing or housing is a partition or rear plate 25 which is disposed substantially haif way between the front and rear edges of the side walls 22 of the front casing or housing of the dispenser to divide the interior of the easing into a closed dispensing mechanism chamber and a. rear open compartment or chamber adapted to fit over the side flanges 8 and the top flange '7 of the rear section of the dispenser to enclose the pad 11 of toilet seat guards. The front or main casing of the dispenser is adapted to be locked to the rear dispenser section by means of a lock 26 mounted in the upper central portion of the front plate 21 of the front section of the dispenser as clearly illustrated in Figure 1. By unlocking the lock 26 by means of a key the front section of the dispenser may be swung downwardly into an open position to permit a pad 1.1 of seat cover guards to be mounted in position in the rear chamber 20 of the dispenser with the pads being supported in position on the supporting studs or pins 10 which engage through suitable side notches provided in the seat cover guards 12. The hem or binding 14 of the pad or pack of seat guards is projected through the opening 2'7 (Figure 4) provided in the angle member 15 to assist in holding the pad in position in the rear chamber of the dispenser ready to have the toilet seat guards 12 dispensed one at a time through the lower discharge or outlet opening 13 located in the lower rear portion of the bottom of the dispenser.

The guard dispenser is adapted to be controlled by the depositing of coin 28 in a coin receiving slot 29 provided in the top wall or flange 23 of the front casing or housing section of the dispenser. The deposited coin 28 is permitted to drop downwardly into a guide slot 30 provided between a pair of plates 31 and 32 which form a coin guide chute. The guide chute plates 31 and 32 are supported on suitable spacing posts 33 fastened to a mounting strip 34 (Figure '7) secured on the inner side of the front wall or plate 21 of the front casing section. Forming a part of the guide plate 31 is a rail or bar 35 on the upper edge of which a deposited coin is adapted to roll as indicated in Figure 8. A coin discharge opening or slot 36 is provided near one end of the discharge chute to permit a deposited coin to be discharged downwardly out of the coin guide chute into a coin-receiving box 3'? which, when in position, is adapted to close an opening provided in the partition plate 25. The coin box 37 is provided with a key lock 38 having a latch member or looking bolt 39 forming a part thereof (Figure 4) and adapted to be projected into a slot 40 provided in a plate 41 secured on the inner surface of the front wall 21 of the front casing section of the dispenser.

Slidably mounted adjacent the inner surface of the top flange 23 of the front casing section is a bar or plate 42 having one end of a control or return coil spring 43 attached to one end thereof. The opposite end of the coil spring 43 is connected to a stud or post secured in one of the upper corners of the front casing section. Secured to the slide plate 42 is an angle bracket 44 having a cam projection 45 integrally formed on the lower edge thereof. Rigidly secured to the angle bracket .44 is the inner plate end of a finger piece or operating member 46. The finger piece 46 projects through a slot 47 illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 7, said slot being provided in the top wall or flange 23 of the front casing section. Also secured to the bracket plate 44is a bar or plate 48 (Figure 7) which carries a coin actuating or pusher stud or finger 49 which projects at right angles from the bar 48 and extends through a longitudinal slot 50 provided in thex'gui'de plate 32. The coin-control stud 49 also projects through the coin guide slot 30 and into a slot 51 provided in the guide plateBl. One end of the slot 51 communicates with one end of an enlarged slot 52 which is also provided in the guide plate 31 as clearly illustrated in Figure 8.

Pivotally mounted on one sideof the guide plate '31 is a pawl 53 (Figure 1'0) which is normally held in a raised position by means of a strap control spring 54 engaged against the lower edge thereof. One end of the control spring 54 is secured to the lower edge of the guide plate 31. R- tatably supported on the pawl 53 is a control roller 55 which is positioned to coact with the control cam 45 to form apart of the finger piece mech anism for operating the dispenser. As clearly illustrated in Figure 10, the control cam 45 coa'ct'ing with the roller 55 normally acts to hold the pawl 53 when it is lowered to full line .position against the action of the control spring 54.

slidably engaged in. a guide groove provided in one side of the guide plate 31 is an actuating bar 56 provided with a latching notch 57 in the lower edge thereof. One end of the operating bar 56 is provided with a pair of teeth or projections 58 projecting at right angles from the bar and projecting through the slot 52 of the guide bar 31 and into the coin guide groove or passage as clearly illustrated in Figure 7.. The two teeth 58 as illustrated in Figure 8 are adapted to serve as stops against which a coin 28 is adapted to be seated when the control stud 49 operated by the finger piece is projected against one edge of a deposited coin to permit actuation of the seat cover guard dispensing mechanism. The two coin stop teeth 58 are spaced apart to permit the coin-pushing stud 49 to pass between the teeth 58 when no coin is deposited, thereby providing an arrangement permitting the finger piece '46 to be actuated without causing operation of the operating bar 56 and the seat cover guard dispensing mechanisms operable thereby. When a coin is deposited as illustrated in Figures '8 and 10, the

' coin drops into a position resting on the guide rail and disposed between the stud 49 and the teeth 58, so that when the finger piece 46 is moved from the full line position of Figure 1-0 into the dotted line position, the cam is moved out of engagement with the roller '55 thereby permitting the spring 54 to spring the pawl 53 upwardly into the latching notch 57 when said notch is brought into register with the toothed end of the pawl 53 by the slidable movement of the operating bar '56 which is accomplished through the medium of the deposited "coin. The operating bar 56 is thus held in a locked or latched position until the finger piece 46 is released and is returned into its normal position by the action of the control spring 43. With the return of the finger piece the control cam '45 carried thereby is brought into engagement with the roller thereby causing the locking pawl 53 to be swung downwardly out of engagement with the latch notch 57 of the operating bar 56.

"The operating 'bar 56 is not only positioned to slide in the guide groove provided in one side of the guide plate31 'butalso passes between a pair of spaced flanged guide rollers 59 which are rotatably supported 'upon one side of the partition plate 25 as illustrated in Figure 6. Pivotally connected 'on one end of the operating bar 56 is one end of a link or connecting bar 60. The lower end of the connecting bar 60 is pivotally connected to a slidable or vertically reciprocating frame or carriage 61. The carriage '61 is provided with guide rollers 62 (Figure 4) which are positioned to track on guide rails 63 secured in parallel relationon one side of the partition plate .25. of attached to the connecting bar 60 while the other end is connected to one of the cross members forming a part of the slidable carriage or frame 61. Supported on the carriage 61 are up per and lower cross rods 65, each of which has secured thereto the upper ends of a pair of hinge arms or plates 66 the lower ends of which are hingedly connected to a pair of seat cover guard dispensing shoesor padsuppo'rting plates 67-each of which carries a fiat, soft sponge rubber dispensing pad 68. The partition plate 25 is provided with elongated slots or openings 69 (Figure 5) through which the dispensing pads are adapted to be projected into the rear section compartment 20 of the dispenser into frictional contact with a section of the outermost or top folded toilet seat guard 12 of the pad 1 1 as illustrated by the upper dotted line position of the discharge pads 68 as clearly illustrated in Figure 6.

The dispensing pads 68 normally drop by gravity back through the openings 69 into the front compartment of the dispenser casing as illustrated in full "line in Figure 6. The slidable carriage '61 is normally held in its uppermost position as indicated in full lines in Figure 6 by means of a coil control spring 70, the lower end of which is'attached to the lower member of the canr-iage 61 while the upper end of said spring is secured to a stud or post fastened on one side of the partition plate 25.

The dispensing pads 68 are adapted to be projected into their full line position illustrated in Figure 6 through the openings 69 and into engagement with the foremost folded toilet seat guard forming a part of the pad 11 each time the control finger piece 46 is actuated regardless of whether a coin has been deposited in the dispenser or not. No dispensing of a guard 12 from the dispenser casing is accomplished until the slidable carriage 61 is slidably moved downwardly from the full line position of Figure 6 into the dotted line position and with the pads 68 projected into engagement with the outermost guard of the pad 11 This can only be accomplished by the depositing of a coin and the subsequent operation of the finger piece 46.

The pads 68 are projected into engagement with the guards of the pad 11 by a finger piece control mechanism comprising a coiled spring 71 having one end thereof connected to the finger piece 46 or the plate 42. The opposite end of the control spring 71 is connected to one end of an arm 72, the other end of which is secured at an angle to one side of the upper end of a guide lever 73. The lower end of the lever 73 is .pivotally secured to one side of the lower portion of the partition plate 25. Formed in the pivoted lever "73 is a longitudinally disposed slot '74 in which a guide roller 75 is slidably engaged. The roller '75 is pivotally mounted on the upper end A coiled control spring 64 has one end-thereof an arm 76, the lower end of which is pivotally supported on one of the vertical members of the carriage 61. Secured on the arm 76 at substantially right angles is an arm '77 which, together with the arm '76, forms a bellcrank unit. The outer end of the arm '77 is pivotally connected to an angle member or bellcrank '78 which is pivotally mounted at one end of the upper horizontal member of the reciprocating carriage 61. The bellcrank member '78 is provided with an opening through which a ball member 79 projects. The ball '79 forms an integral part of a crank member which is secured on one projecting end of the upper cross rod 65 of the carriage 61. When the bellcrank '78 is actuated, the upper cross rod 65 is rocked or partially rotated to actuate the hinge members 66 to swing the same from the full line position illustrated in Figure 6 into the dotted line position, thereby causing the guard discharge pad 68 to be projected rearwardly through the opening 69 and into frictional contact with the foremost folded toilet seat guard of pad 11.

In the operation of the carriage 61 the upward movement thereof is arrested by means of a stop bracket 81 secured on one side of the partition plate 25 as clearly illustrated in Figures 3 and 4.

The operation is as follows The improved toilet seat guard dispenser as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 is adapted to be mounted in position in front of the flush tank 2 of a toilet with the supporting legs 5 of the dispenser secured in position by means of the hinge posts 3 to which the toilet seat 4 is hingedly connected. The guard apron 9 is thus positioned a short distance above the rear end of the toilet seat ready to serve as a means for directing the advance end of a toilet seat guard 12 outwardly in a position for convenient engagement after the dispenser has been operated. To operate the dispenser a coin is deposited in the coin receiving slot 29 and, as illustrated in Figure 8, drops into a position resting on the guide rail 35 between the pin or stud 49 and the teeth 58 of the operating bar 56. After the depositing of a coin, the control finger piece 46 is merely pushed from the full line position illustrated in Figure 3 toward the dotted line position, thereby causing the control spring '71 to be tensioned to move the arm '72 and the pivoted lever '73 from the full line position of Figure 3 into the dotted line position, thereby operating the connected arms 76 and 7'? to pivotally rock or swing the bellcrank member 7 8 from the full line position of Figure 5 into the dotted line position. With the operation of the bellcrank 78 the ball '79 forming a part of the crank member so is swung downwardly thereby causing rocking of the upper connecting or cross rod 65 to cause simultaneous swinging of the four hinge plates or straps 66 from the full line position of Figure 6 into the dotted line position to cause the friction pads 68 to be projected rearwardly through the openings 69 of the partition plate 25 into frictional contact with a folded portion of the outermost toilet s at guard 12 of the guard pad 11. With the operation of the finger piece 46 and the projection of the dispensing pads 68 into contact with one of the toilet seat guards, themovement of the deposited coin into engagement with the teeth 58 of the actuating bar 56 causes the bar to be slidably moved from the full line position of Figure 3 into the dotted line position, "thereby actuating the spring controlled lever or arm 60 to cause the carriage 61 to slidably move downwardly from the full line position of Figure 3 toward the dotted line position simultaneously with the movement of the dispensing pads 68 into engagement with the outermost toilet seat guard of the pad 11, so that as the carriage 61 moves downwardly the pads 68 travel downwardly from the upper dotted line position of Figure 6 toward the lower dotted line position to cause the advance end of a toilet seat guard 12 to be projected downwardly out through the discharge opening 13 into contact with the guide apron 9 to be conveniently engaged by a person operating the dispenser.

When the advance end of a toilet seat guard is projected outwardly through the discharge opening 13, the operating finger piece 46 is released thereby releasing the control spring '71 allowing the finger piece to be pulled back from the dotted line position of Figure 3 into the normal full line position thereof ready for a further dispensing operation of the machine. With the release of the finger piece 45, the discharge pads 68 are permitted to swing by gravity from the lower dotted line position of Figure 6 back through the openings 69 into the lower portion of the front chamber of the dispenser. This operation takes place as the control spring '70 governing the carriage 61 acts to cause the carriage to slide upwardly from the dotted line position of Figure 3 back toward the full line position to carry the dispensing pads back into normal position ready for another dispensing operation.

After the release of the operating finger piece 46, a person operating the machine merely pulls outwardly on the projecting end of the toilet seat guard 12 to pull the remainder of the guard from the dispenser housing over the top of the toilet seat 4 as clearly illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 allowing the tail piece 19 to be held in position connected with the seam of the pad 11 while the penis protecting flap is permitted to drop downwardly into the toilet bowl 1 as illustrated in Figure 2. After a toilet seat guard has been used the tail piece 19 may be torn off to permit the guard to be deposited within the toilet bowl and disposed of with the flushing of the bowl.

The improved guard dispenser is permitted to be operated each time a coin is deposited in the receiving slot 29 to cause the toilet seat guards 12 to be dispensed one at a time from. the dispenser housing when the finger piece 46 is actuated. 7:

When a pad of toilet seat guards has been used up, an attendant may insert a key in the lock 26 to permit the front casing section to be hingedly swung downwardly to permit a new pad of guards to be inserted in the rear casing section with the hem portion of the pad inserted through the opening 2'7 as illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 and with the side margins of the guards engaged on the supporting studs or pins 10. When the front casing section is in an open position, the attendant may gain access to the coins in the coin box 37 by unlocking the lock 38 thereby permitting the coin-receiving box 3'7 to be removed and emptied.

It will of course be understood that various de- 1 lllll tails of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is therefore not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope or" the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means in said housing for holding a pad of toilet seat guards in position ready to be dispehsedfrom the housing,dis'pensing means, a re-- ciprocating mechanism for carrying the same, and control meansfor movingthe dispensing meansupwardly into. resilient contact with a guard and then causing the reciprocating mechanism to be operated J to cause the dispensing means to project one end of a single toilet seat guard from the housing allowing the opposite end of said guard to remain connected to the pad.

2. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means for supporting the same, a reciprocating mechanism in said housing, means for mounting a pad of toilet seat guards in said housing, gravity controlled guard dispensing means carried by the reciprocating mechanism, means carried by the reciprocating mechanism for moving the dispensing means upwardly into resilient engagement with a folded portion of a toilet seat guard, and a mechanism for actuating the dispensing means and said reciprocating mechanism to cause only one end of the engaged toilet seat guard to be projected from the housing to permit the remainder of the guard to be manually withdrawnfrom the housing by a person operating the dispenser.

3. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means therein for holding a plurality of superimposed toilet seat guards in position, gravity controlled dispensing pads hanging in said housing, means for projecting the dispensing pads upwardly into engagement with one of the toilet seat guards, and a mechanism for carrying the advanced pads through a predetermined path to project a portion of the engaged toilet seat guard out of said housing, said pads being movable downwardly bygravity out of engagement with the advanced toilet seat guard to permit the balance of the guard to be pulled from said housing.

4. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means therein for supporting a plurality of toilet seat guards, a slidable carriage in said housing, gravity controlled dispensing pads hingedly hung on said carriage, means for swinging the pads upwardly against the action of gravity into contact with one of the toilet seat guards,

and means for advancing the carriage to cause the dispensing pads to first project a portion of the engaged toilet seat guard from the housing and then release the advanced guard by permitting the dispensing pads to be retracted by the action of gravity to permit the guard to be pulled from the housing.

5. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means therein for supporting a plurality of toilet seat guards, a carriage slidably mounted in said housing, dispensing means hingedly hung on said carriage, means for moving the dispensing means upwardly into contact with one of the toilet seat guards, and a control mechanism for operating the slidable carriage to cause the dispensing means to move downwardly to project the engaged toilet seat guard from the housing and then release the projected guard to permit the same to be pulled from the housing.

6. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means therein for holding a plurality of toilet seat guards in position, a slidable carriage in said housing, guard dispensing members carried by said carriage, means carried by said carriage for moving the guard dispensing members upwardly into contact with one of the toilet seat guards in said housing, and a coincontrolled mechanism connected with said carriage and said means operable after the guard dispensing members have been projected into engagement with one of the guards to cause the slidable carriage to move through a predetermined path to cause the dispensing members to partially: project the engaged guard from the housing and then release the advanced guard to permit the same to be pulled out of the housing.

7. A toilet seat guard dispenser comprising a housing, means for supporting the same on the hinge posts of a toilet seat, a guide member forming part of said housing, a spring-controlled carriage slidably mounted in said housing, dispensing members hingedly hung on the carriage, and normally retained in a retracted position by the action of gravity, means on said carriage for moving the dispensing members upwardly into contact with a toilet seat guard and an operating mechanism connected with said means to advance the carriage causing the dispensing members to project a portion of the engaged guard from the housing into contact with the guide member to be deflected outwardly thereby, said dispensing members retractible by the action of gravity with the release of the operating ,mechanism to permit the partially projected toilet seat guard to be pulled from the housing into a position to cover the toilet seat.

8. An article dispenser comprising a housing containing a plurality of folded articles, reciprocating means in said housing, gravity-controlled means hung on said reciprocating means, an operating mechanism operable to move the gravity-controlled means upwardly into engagement with one of the folded articles and then cause operation of the reciprocating means to project a portion of the engaged article from the housing, said gravity-controlled means adapted by the action of gravity to move out of engagement with the projected article with the release of the operating mechanism, and means for returning the reciprocating means to normal position when said operating mechanism is released.

9. An article dispenser comprising a housing containing a plurality of articles to be dispensed, gravity-controlled dispensing means in said housing, and a control means for moving the dispensing means upwardly into engagement with one of the articles and then lower the dis pensing means to cause the same to project a portion of the engaged article from the housing, said control means when released permitting the dispensing means to drop by gravity out of engagement with the partially projected article to permit the article to be manually withdrawn from the housing.

10. A coin controlled article dispenser comprising a housing for enclosing a plurality of articles to be dispensed one at a time, means for supporting the housing, a travelling carriage in said housing, article dispensing means carried by said carriage, an operating mechanism connected with said carriage, a finger piece connected with said operating mechanism and projecting from the housing, actuating means connected with said finger piece and with the article dispensing means, said finger piece being operable without the aid of a coin to first cause the dispensing means to be projected into engagement with an article within the housing, auxiliary means advanceable with the operation of the finger piece only when a coin is deposited in said housing to project the engaged article from the housing, and means to automatically release the projected article with the release of the finger piece.

11. In a coin controlled toiletseat guard dispensing device of the class described the combination with a housing for containing a plurality of toilet seat guards, of a guard dispensing mechanism in said housing, an actuating means for said mechanism operable without the aid of a coin to cause the dispensing mechanism 

